Xero and the benefits of cloud accounting – Part 1

If you run your own business then you cannot get around the fact you will need to do some element of bookkeeping. Cloud accounting has become extremely popular in the last few years, and with the imminent changes with HMRC’s Making Tax Digital, I can only see cloud accounting becoming an essential tool for all business owners. At CHA, we have worked with a number of cloud accounting packages and by far the stand out one in my opinion is Xero. It is aimed at business owners, but has all of the functionality that accountants and bookkeepers also need. With its ease of use and excellent functionality, it is not hard to see why Xero currently has over 1 million subscribers. Xero is innovative and is always improving its product, leaving the competition in the shadows. Here are 5 impressive features to explain why Xero is our favourite accounting software:

Firstly, Xero runs in the cloud.  Sounds a quite an obvious statement, but why is this a benefit?  Well, it means that Xero is always available – any time of day, anywhere in the world.  You can run it from any device meaning you are no longer tied to your desk!  As there is no software to install you are always accessing the most up to date version – no more software updates that are frustrating to install!  It also means that your Xero account is automatically back dated to the main Xero servers, so you can rest assured that you will not lose data if something happens to your computer/laptop.

Xero is simple – it just works!  It is intuitive, which will save you time, money and stress!

Xero integrates with many banks, and the smooth integration  with your bank, seamlessly pulls transactions through to Xero allowing easy reconciliation – we like to think of it as a game of snap!  Rules can also be set up to optimise automation.

We all love an app, and Xero’s mobile app is a great addition to your smart phone.  It’s available on both Apple and Android devices and allows you the flexibility to work on the go.  The app allows you to raise invoices in real time, even when you are at your customer’s premises if necessary.  You can also take pictures of your receipts (no fear of you losing them) and upload as an expense claim.

One of our recent finds is an integration with Receipt Bank, where you can take pictures of all of your purchase invoices and receipts (with another great app – we love an app!) which are then pushed into Xero ready to reconcile with the bank transactions via the bank feed.  This makes it even easier for business owners to complete their bookkeeping, and also means you no longer need to keep all those paper receipts as they are stored electronically directly with the transaction.

There are of course many, many more great features which will follow in Part 2, but hopefully these few will give you an idea of why Xero is the one for us, and how it can help you and your business.  We are able to offer free 30-day trials for anyone who’d like to see more, with no obligation if it is not for you, just get in touch and we’ll do the rest!  We can also convert your existing Sage and Quickbook records to Xero.

Oh, and a last point – Xero’s technical support is fantastic – they really do look after all of their subscribers and value each and every one.